One of the main assets of Bolognas economic system is a widespread culture of technical know-how that has its roots in many centuries of tradition and has been able to update itself continuously. This vast capital of skills has formed the basis for the territorys marked entrepreneurial development; Bologna today boasts one business for every ten inhabitants.
A modern economic system exporting specialised and high-tech products for a total of 7 billion euros (equivalent to 64.2% of all Bolognese exports) and which has a strong propensity for innovation.
Bologna a place of innovation. Bologna has been first in Italy for the number of registered patents per number of active businesses for many years now; in 2007, 9.74 patents were registered for every 1000 businesses (5 times the national average). The result is an indicator of the capacity for innovation that has always characterised this territory, the home of the scientists Guglielmo Marconi and Luigi Galvani.
This aptitude for technical innovation is widespread among both the territorys small- to medium-sized businesses and the major companies, and is strongly supported by an extensive and articulated research system capable of generating knowledge spillovers across the territory. Around 4,500 researchers operate in Bologna in the head offices of the main national scientific research institutes (CNR, ENEA, INAF) and the 68 university research departments. The system reaches standards of excellence in numerous areas: mechanical and electronic technology, life science, agro-food, construction and construction materials, ICT, environment and renewable energies.
Technological transfer and relations between business and the world of science are extremely intense, and are promoted by institutional initiatives and funding. Bologna is home to 13 centres (research laboratories and innovations centers) belonging to the regional industrial research and technological transfer network (Emilia-Romagna High-Tech Network).
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